By Nicholas Soto, ICE Chair

Welcome to 2020. The year is underway, and many of us probably have at least one new year’s resolution. Whether it’s about accomplishing a personal goal or making an impact on the world around you, resolutions at their core are about making an investment of time in what is important to you.  

We work in an industry that prides itself on its stakeholders and members making personal investments through credentialing. We follow ridged standards to ensure that the credentials following someone’s name are of high quality and value. We set our goals higher every year to ensure people see the return in making that personal investment.

The ICE Board of Directors has also set high goals for the organization. With the help of a growing membership, exceptional volunteers and outstanding staff, ICE continues to achieve its objectives. The growth and success were seen at the ICE Exchange (7.80% increase, 2019 compared to 2018), within the Credentialing Specialist program (18.88% increase, 2019 compared to 2018), and in the ICE membership (7.8% growth, 2019 compared to 2018). The continued success cannot happen without the investment of time from the ICE members. 

In 2019, the ICE Board began new strategic projects, like the revision of its mission, vision and end statements. The next revision of ICE's mission and vision will help drive the success of the organization for years to come. However, the success of ICE’s mission and vision relies on you, the stakeholders, to support the organization’s direction.

What Does That Mean For You?

ICE needs your involvement, thoughts and opinions. ICE sends out a request for volunteers annually, because the organization needs diverse and inclusive opinions from a variety of industries, stakeholders and professionals. For example, at the 2019 ICE Exchange, volunteers were asked their views on the revisions to the mission and vision. ICE also surveys stakeholders throughout the year to ensure as much data as possible is collected. The more input ICE gets, the better the decision-making processes can be, and the better understanding of the needs of the industry. 

ICE is here to help credentialing bodies and the organizations that support them. Whether helping create the Professional Certification Coalition, outlining a career path in credentialing, defining standards to recognize high-quality programs through accreditation, or undergoing the research and development necessary to help advance the industry, ICE is here to support the professionals in the credentialing industry. 

A Challenge for 2020

As 2020 pushes forward, I challenge you to think about what you are doing to help pay it forward in our industry. Are you taking the time to invest in yourself and your industry? Our credentialing profession still faces many challenges and needs constant improvement. We all have an opinion on what the focus for improvement needs should be or how to address the challenges, but without your involvement, we don’t know your opinions. 

We live in a busy world, and time is becoming an increasingly limited resource. However, none of us want to be excluded from the important conversations. Our thoughts and opinions matter.

Get involved. Make sure your opinion gets included. Make sure your voice is heard. Here are just a few ideas to get started:   

• Find time to volunteer.
• Fill out a survey.
• Become a mentor.
• Help identify someone who isn't involved and encourage them to get engaged.
• Participate in an upcoming virtual Town Hall.
• Donate time or money to assisting with research and development.
• Find a way to be more collaborative.
• Identify any and all opportunities to give back to the profession. 

These investments will enhance our profession by adding your voice to the discussion. Adding your voice to the discussion improves your network.   

We tell the same things to our volunteers and subject matter experts by preaching the value of networking. We tell them that networking will help you develop and improve your skillset, stay on top of the latest trends, keep a pulse on the job market, meet mentors, partners, and clients, and gain access to resources that will foster career development.

Make one of your top resolutions to invest into yourself. Make the time to focus on your own professional growth. Make as big of an impact as possible within our own industry.   

ICE needs you in order to continue advancing credentialing professionals. Help ICE continue to grow and help make the 2020 vision a reality. 

ICE Virtual Town Halls

The ICE Board of Directors would like to hear from you. In 2019, the board introduced new draft statements for the organization’s Mission and Vision. They also released revised Ends Statements. The ICE Board of Directors follows the Policy Governance (a.k.a. Carver) model. These three elements feed the Strategic Plan and the direction of the organization. The board received input from a variety of stakeholder audience including volunteer leaders at the ICE Exchange 2019 in San Diego.

Now the board would like to hear from you. Two virtual Town Hall meetings have been established to gain your perspective.

Tuesday, March 3 at 12:00 pm ET

Thursday, March 12 at 1:00 pm ET

These meetings are open to active ICE members. Please visit https://www.credentialingexcellence.org/blog/ice-virtual-town-halls to select a session. Once you check out, you will be sent a registration link.